A power-sharing government is seen by Southern African Development Community (SADC) leaders as well as the African Union as the most viable way to resolve Zimbabwe’s long-running political and economic crisis
But civic society groups have long said Zimbabwe’s future cannot be guaranteed by an “elitist power-sharing pact” between the country’s most powerful politicians.
Fambai Ngirande, the spokesman for the National Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (NANGO) said the civic groups would organise protest marches, demonstrations and public meetings to draw the attention of SADC leaders to ordinary Zimbabweans’ objection to a unity government.
South African civic society groups will also take part in the protests in solidarity with their Zimbabwean colleagues, said Ngirande.
He said: “We are going to the SADC summit to press for the Zimbabwe people’s rejection of the proposed government of national unity and the elite power-sharing arrangement being fronted by President Thabo Mbeki (the South African leader is SADC’s chief mediator in the Zimbabwe talks).
“A number of solidarity actions will be undertaken at the event, including marches, demonstrations and public meetings.”
Zimbabwe’s feuding political parties began dialogue about two weeks ago in a bid to break a long-running crisis that took a turn for the worse following Mugabe’s disputed and violent re-election in the June.
Zimbabwean and South African officials speaking separately on Thursday described the power-sharing talks as progressing “very well” although a widely expected meeting between Mugabe and main MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai did not take place.
Mugabe’s spokesman, George Charamba, said no such meeting took place because none had been scheduled, adding that South African President Thabo Mbeki – chief mediator in the talks – was not coming to Harare as had been reported earlier.
However impeccable sources told ZimOnline later on Thursday that Mbeki would now be travelling to Harare this coming weekend and will facilitate a meeting between Tsvangirai, Mugabe and another MDC leader Arthur Mutambara that will tackle some sticking points standing in the way of a power-sharing deal between the three rivals.
Meanwhile Zambian immigration authorities on Thursday deported more than 10 Zimbabwean civic activists saying meetings they were due to hold “were aimed at destabilising dialogue” between ZANU PF and MDC.
The activists, among them, Abel Chikomo from the Media Monitoring Project of Zimbabwe (MMPZ), Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition director Xolani Zitha and spokesperson Mcdonald Lewanika, and Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights director Irene Petras, had gone to neighbouring Zambia for a series of consultative meetings on Zimbabwe’s slowly unfolding transition process.
“The Zambian immigration officers alleged that the meeting was bent on disrupting ongoing dialogue between ZANU PF and MDC,” said one of the activists, adding they were deported upon landing at Lusaka International airport. – ZimOnline
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